TriumphTR6

Triumph TR6 Parts

Parts for the TR6 are easier to find than for most cars of its age: what is made again, what it shares with the TR4A, the TR5, the 2.5 PI saloon and the Stag, and the clubs that keep the cars' records.

A stripped black Triumph TR6 body on its frame, without bumpers, grille or lamps, strapped to a car trailer in a street.
A TR6 body without its bumpers, grille or lamps, on its frame and strapped to a trailer, in the Netherlands in October 2009: a restoration under way.Macfip, CC BY-SA 3.0

The TR6 is one of the easier classic cars to keep on the road. Graham Robson, writing the foreword to Rimmer Bros' TR6 parts catalogue, put it plainly: "the joy of owning a TR6 is that almost every spare part is available". The Vintage Triumph Register calls the supply excellent, from parts for a tune-up to whole bodyshells. Much of the car was shared with other Triumphs, which helps.⁠1​2

What is made again

Many parts come from the factory's own tools. British Motor Heritage parts are produced, in the words of Rimmer's catalogue, "mostly from the original tooling and to the original specification", and in 1994 Moss Motoring reported that nearly every body panel could be bought, most of them pressed on the original tools. Hagerty found replacement frames on sale in 2014. Not every reproduction is as good as the part it replaces, and the buying guide passes on TR-Register Deutschland's warnings.

Parts are best ordered by the car's numbers rather than its year. The TR6 changed in the middle of model years as well as between them, as when its gearbox (transmission) gained stronger internals in 1971, and Rimmer's catalogue marks the changes by commission number. Revington TR, a specialist, does not try to list them all for the TR6, which it says would take a lifetime. Identification shows where the numbers are.⁠1​3​4​5​6

A rusty bare chassis frame on its wheels in a yard, with the six-cylinder engine, gearbox and rear suspension still fitted.
A bare separate frame, still carrying its engine and gearbox, which its photographer calls a TR6's, in a yard in 2008: frames like it have since been made new.dave_7, CC BY-SA 2.0

What it shares with other Triumphs

The TR6 was the last of a family, and much of it is shared. Under Karmann's new ends, the frame, the running gear and the middle of the body were those of the TR5 and the TR250, which had them from the TR4A. The injected engine was the TR5 PI's and the Triumph 2.5 PI saloon's (sedan's), and the carburetted one the TR250's. A part made for one of these cars may also fit another, as the table shows, and some made for the TR6 replace the TR4A's own.⁠6​7​2​8​9​10​5​11​12​13​1​14

PartShared withNote
Frame, suspension and running gearThe TR5 and TR250; largely the TR4A
Doors, windscreen (windshield) frame, floor, sills (rocker panels) and bulkheadThe TR5 and TR250Revington TR lists them among the parts kept
Injected engine and Lucas injectionThe TR5 PI; the Triumph 2.5 PI saloon
Carburetted engineThe TR250Two Zenith-Stromberg carburettors
Gearbox internalsThe Stag's type, from gearbox CC89817 or CP51163 in 1971TR-Register Deutschland's change point
Lower wishbone (A-arm) bracket, with two studsReplaces the TR4A'sThe Vintage Triumph Register
Radiator shroudBolts on to a TR4AThe Vintage Triumph Register
Steering-column switchesThe TR4A's, on the early TR6; later trimmed in blackThe Vintage Triumph Register
Bracing for the wishbone bracketsStandard on late TR6sTR-Register Deutschland recommends it as a repair from the TR4A on
HardtopThe earlier TR4 top fitsRounder in profile, Moss Motoring notes
Head gasketNot shared even within the TR6: one type before commission number 75000, another afterThe importer told owners in February 1972

Specialists and clubs

Specialists have looked after TR6s since they were new. By December 1974 Clive Richardson had had his TR6 PI seen to by DCM The TR Centre, in Lexham Mews, London, and came away impressed with its staff:

These people live, eat and breathe TRs, seeming to know as much about them as the factory and probably more as regards the problems normally suffered by customers.

Clive Richardson, Motor Sport, December 1974

The clubs keep the cars' records and much of the knowledge.

  • The TR Register, in Britain: buyers' guides, and a registrar for the TR6.

  • Club Triumph and the Triumph Sports Six Club, in Britain, which Practical Classics lists with the TR Register for TR6 owners.

  • The TR Drivers Club, in Britain.

  • The Vintage Triumph Register, in the United States: its TR6 pages, with a buyer's guide, and the archive of the American importer's newsletters.

  • The 6-Pack Car Club of the Americas, for the TR250 and the TR6.

  • TR-Register Deutschland, in Germany: Bruno Dwinger's guide to the TR6's history and to buying one.

  • The British Motor Museum, at Gaydon: Heritage Certificates, drawn from the factory's build records.⁠15​16​17​2​18​19​5​20

Sources

Sources are given as plain text; their addresses are on the sources page.

  • Primarymade at the time, by the maker or by people who were there
  • Referenceserious later work: clubs, specialists, magazines, books
  1. Graham Robson (foreword), Triumph TR6 1969–1976 Parts & Accessories Catalogue, Rimmer Bros, edn 2.2 (source code TR600313), p. 2, Robson's foreword: "almost every spare part is available"; British Motor Heritage: "mostly from the original tooling and to the original specification"; the parts lists by commission number; the head gaskets before and after commission no. 75000. Reference
  2. Vintage Triumph Register, "TR6" (history, year-by-year changes, US production table, buyer's guide), buyer's guide: parts availability; history: the main substructure; the gearbox; the club; the TSOA archive. Reference
  3. Moss Motoring, "Twenty-Five years of the TR6: A Nostalgic Profile", Oct 1994, body panels from original tooling. Reference
  4. Rob Sass, "Buyers Guide: Triumph TR6", Hagerty UK, 12 Nov 2014, replacement chassis available. Reference
  5. Bruno Dwinger, "Geschichte, Typenkunde und Kaufberatung: British Leyland Triumph TR 6PI und TR 6 (Vergaser) – Die Karmann Autos", TR-Register Deutschland, c. 2010, 13 pp. (PDF), reproduction parts; the gearbox change point; p. 4, the gearbox from CC89817 and CP51163; the wishbone-bracket bracing; the guide. Reference
  6. Revington TR, "Technical Specification Change Points" (TR6), a life's work to list every TR6 change; the parts carried over: doors, windscreen frame, floor, sills, bulkhead. Reference
  7. TR Register, "Triumph TR6 Buyers Guide" (facts sheet), the TR5 and TR250 frame and running gear. Reference
  8. Bill Boddy, "Rumblings" (TR6 PI and 2.5 PI Mk II), Motor Sport, Mar 1971, p. 34, p. 34, the saloon's engine. Primary
  9. Aaron Severson, "Grandfather's Ax: The Many Evolutions of the Triumph TR4, Part 2: TR5, TR250, and TR6", Ate Up With Motor, 7 Nov 2012, A new bottle: the TR250's engine; the 2.5 PI; the Stag-type gearbox. Reference
  10. Charlie Calderwood, "Datsun 240Z vs Triumph TR6: the battle for America", Classic & Sports Car, 1 Feb 2023, the carburetted engine from the TR250. Reference
  11. Bruno Dwinger, "Geschichte, Typenkunde und Kaufberatung: Standard-Triumph TR4, TR5/TR250 – 'die Michelotti Autos'", TR-Register Deutschland, 2009, 13 pp. (PDF), the cracked wishbone brackets and the bracing as a repair. Reference
  12. Vintage Triumph Register, "TR4A" (history, change points and yearly output, buyer's and spotter's guides, numbering), TR250/TR6 parts interchange: the wishbone bracket, the radiator shroud, the column switchgear. Reference
  13. Moss Motoring, "Triumph TR6: An Enduring Classic", 9 Jan 2009, the earlier TR4 top fits. Reference
  14. Triumph Sports Owners Association, Triumph Sports Owners Association Newsletter, February 1972, Feb 1972, service notes: head gaskets before and after commission no. 75000. Primary
  15. Clive Richardson, "The continuing tale of a TR6", Motor Sport, Dec 1974, p. 53, p. 53, DCM The TR Centre. Primary
  16. TR Register, "Buyer Beware: TR6" (2 pp. PDF leaflet), p. 2, the registrars. Reference
  17. Practical Classics, "Buyer's Brief: Triumph TR6", updated 29 Jan 2025, the clubs. Reference
  18. TR Drivers Club, TR Drivers Club, home page. Reference
  19. 6-Pack Car Club of the Americas, 6-Pack Car Club of the Americas, home page. Reference
  20. British Motor Museum (BMIHT), "Heritage Certificates", the service. Primary